Oxygen
by Pixelfun20
Summary: There was a traitor. As much as Jean hated to admit it, it was true, though no one knew his theory yet. With a traitor in place, it all made sense. The attack, where and when they happened... However, he has gotten too close to the truth, and had become a target...


**Me: OhmygoshIlovethisfandomAttackonSpaceisthebestparodyeveriloveitoh—**

 **Gohan: Okay~ *Shoves Pixel away from the computer.* Your obviously too hyped to write this A/N… Anyways, Pixel wrote this one-shot yesterday, and after I reviewed it, we decided to post it, even though it wasn't one of our best works.**

 **Pixel got the idea for this yesterday when we were browsing Deviantart and came across a short one-page manga drawn from a scene in Attack on Space. It's an audiobook on Youtube, and we love it! Pixel might like it too much, though. Though we're only on episode 4, Pixel made up a radom setting for this. You can read it without actually hearing the book.**

 **So here…We…GO!**

* * *

Jean sifted through the room, looking desperately for his gear. He was arms-deep in some spare parts, sweating from nervousness.

The room around him was quite Spartan. Colors alternated in strips of gray, white and blue. There was one door, an automatic one, such as the rest of the ship he was on. A large computer screen was on the side, with a keyboard at the same scale. The rest of the room was full of 3DM gear and similar items.

Jean himself wore the typical army uniform. It was a purple-tinted outfit, with a tight-fitting short-sleeved violet jacket(The Survey Corps' emblem on the back) and gloves, plus a lavender polo shirt and pants, that from the knees down, turned into a flexible material—boots—with a headgear that circled around his head, the back almost as high as his hair and lowering until it was only a few inches tall in the front. Everything was heavily padded.

"C-crapbaskets," the ash-hair teen swore to himself. A loud crash sounded through the area, shaking the room, and making Jean fall on his bottom. "Titans are attacking and I can't find my stupid 3DM gear! C'mon, I have to help Marco and the others…"

Titans. Mysterious beings the lived in nebulas, they preyed on the humans in the arks, eating them as they went. Ark Maria had fallen five years ago, and Jean's friends, Eren and Mikasa, were some of the few survivors. Over 6,000 of the 8,000 people on the ship had died.

Over on hundred years ago (107, to be precise), these three arks, Ark Maria, Rose, and Sina, were sent out into space from a dying Earth. The world's leaders, having exhausted nearly every resource on Earth, had pooled this project with their final dollars, desperate to keep humanity alive. Of course, they hadn't expected the titans, who lived in a nebula that the ships were approaching, to attack. The huge cloud of interstellar gas was too large to go around, though, so the ship's only option was to go into it and hope for the best.

Distantly, a roar was heard, and Jean shivered. For all he knew, his friends were dead, and the Galactic Survey Corps (the branch of the military that usually kept the Titans at bay) were all but destroyed.

No. he couldn't think like that. Mikasa, Reiner, and the others were all fine. They had to be.

Still, _where in the freaking world was his 3DM gear_?! He had been looking for it for over an hour now. The ash-haired teen caught his glove in some scrap metal, and he pulled it out with a frustrated tug.

A stream of curses left his mouth. Why did every have to wrong now, when it all counted? This was his chance to prove himself to Erwin and Levi, yet he was here, searching for his stupid swords! Dang, why was he chosen for the Recon Corps?

"Your Omni-Directional gear isn't here, Kirstein."

Jean jumped, looking at the computer screen in a sudden shock. It had turned on, all by itself, and now the head and shoulders of a figure could be seen. He had long-ish blond hair reaching his chin, blue skin and a lighter shade of the same color in his eyes. White lines circulated his body, and he had no clothes on that the teen could see, and his pupils glowed.

"Oh, A.R.M.I.N.," Jean said, relief showing on his face, his shoulders relaxing. "You scared me half to death."

A.R.M.I.N. was the Ark's computer, a sentient being the result of a thousand years of work on Earth. His name was the acronym of the Automated Response Mechanical Interface Network.

"I apologize," the ship's computer responded. "I did not mean to startle you."

"Its fine," Jean waved him off. "Anyways, don't you need to be in the battle? You're needed there."

"I noticed your distress."

The ash-haired teenager frowned, suddenly more on guard. "…Wait. How did you know my gear wasn't here?"

"I took it."

What? Jean's eye widened as he stood up to fully face the ship's computer. "Why? You were programed to help us!" he exclaimed, now angry. A.R.M.I.N couldn't be him… "Tell me where it is!"

The Titans couldn't have broken the hull by themselves, Jean knew that. The ship was strong, too strong for the cannibals. The cadet had a theory, however. As much as he hated it, someone—or something—was aiding the Titans in their fight, weakening the ship's shields.

"Why?" A.R.M.I.N. asked, bringing a hand into view, gesturing to the door, face emotionless. "You won't be leaving this room."

Jean scowled. "So it was you!" he accused. "You're the one who helped bring down Ark Maria!"

A.R.M.I.N. shrugged. "So?" he asked. "Truthfully, I must confess, I didn't mean for 6,000 people to die, but…well, accidents happen."

"So you think that killing Eren's mother was an _accident_?!" Jean was practically foaming at the mouth. As much as Eren rubbed him the wrong way, killing his mother was what had made him that way.

"Yes," A.R.M.I.N. deadpanned, emotionless. "I'm not just any computer. I knew your theory, Jean. And I know you haven't told anyone yet."

Jean flipped off the computer. "Go and die in the vacuum of space," he said. "I will get out, you little microwave. And when I do—"

"There is only one way you're getting out," A.R.M.I.N. cut in, just a stoic as ever. "And that is if you vow never to speak a word of this to another soul. You can't hide from me, Kirstein. I _am_ the Arks. I control the Survey Corps' space suits, what you breathe and what you eat. You cannot hide from me."

Jean scowled. "Why are you even telling me this? I could've easily passed over you."

"Ah, but Mikasa and Levi wouldn't have. They don't trust me, and I would've their first suspect. Better to kill the root at the source."

A.R.M.I.N. spoke with such clear resolve and lack of emotion, as if he was simply telling a story, that Jean growled, grabbing a spare sword and ignited the green laser blade.

"You would change nothing, Jean. I would still be here, and you would be dead."

A chill tumbled down the young soldier's spine, and he reluctantly deactivated the sword. The A.I. was right, as much as he hated it. Pulling an Eren and destroying everything wouldn't do anything.

"This is your last warning," A.R.M.I.N. cut in calmly. "Stop."

"Go die in the depths of space." The only thing he could do now was bluff and act confident as his mind raced to find an escape— "What the heck just happened?"

The air suddenly felt…different. The mechanisms in the walls began to whirr, and suddenly he couldn't seem to breathe.

"Oh, I just decided to access protocol 1-D, the Emergency Defense System." A.R.M.I.N. sounded as if he was announcing dinner. Jean's skin crawled, and he lifted his hand to his throat. Why couldn't he breathe?

"W-what?" His voice finally betrayed his fear. "What are you talking about?! What's happening?!"

The A.I. blinked. "My apologies, Jean," he replied, slightly surprised. "I forgot you needed oxygen to breathe. I promise this mistake won't happen again."

"A-A.R.M.I.N. what are you doing?" Jean was frantic now. Everything was fading in and out, and black tinged his vision. He fell to his hands and knees. "I can't breathe! M-my lungs are burning! P-please…stop…"

"I'm sorry Jean, but I'm afraid I can't do that."

The world turned black, and the ash-haired teen barely felt himself hit the floor. "A-A.R.M.I.N.…" he whispered quietly, one last plea for life.

Distantly, he heard a reply. "You won't be able to reach the door in time, Jean. You should suffocate in about twenty seconds."

It felt as if he was lifting a thousand pounds, but Jean was barely able to move his hand, the small blade embedded in his glove scratching the floor.

"Good-bye, Jean."

He had one last thought before the world faded out.

 _Eren…Marco…Mikasa… I leave the rest to you._

* * *

Hanji jogged through the halls, her fists clenched tightly against her swords, her lasers casting green shadows over the hallway.

"Lieutenant," Krista asked from her place at the scientist's right side. "Where are we going? I didn't hear any orders to move away from the fight."

"Yeah," Marco agreed. "What are you doing? —With all due respect, ma'am."

Hanji frowned. "Something wrong on this side of the ship," she replied, turning a corner. "The others can handle the Titan. I received a warning from the computer."

"A.R.M.I.N.?" Krista asked.

"No," Hanji answered. "He was probably too busy with the fight to notice. However, there's an alarm going off in one of the equipment rooms. There's no oxygen."

Marco's eyes widened, getting her jist. "So you think that the Titans might've planned the attack at the helm a distraction?"

The Titan scientist nodded. "So far, we haven't seen any intelligence from these beasts," she thought aloud. "But we've only been fighting them for ten years now. You never know."

Finally, the lieutenant raised a hand and stopped her subordinates. In front of them, a door lead to the room where the Titans might've breached.

"Helmets on, Marco." Krista snapped the black-haired teen out of his thoughts, pushing a button on the side of her headgear, a glass protection snapping in place. Both of her comrades copied her movements.

"On my mark," Hanji commanded, and the trio readied their 3DM gear, fully prepared to face the vacuum of space on the other side. "Now!"

Krista quickly opened the door, and the three rushed inside as Marco shut it again. Then, they relaxed. The room was quiet, and there was no sign of damage.

"Don't take off your helmets," Zoe warned through their internal radio, still cautious as she studied the room. "I'm still not getting any readouts of Oxygen in the room. What in the galaxy happened—?"

Suddenly, Marco cried out, running over towards where the computer was stationed. To the others' horror, a body was slumped on the ground, face down.

"O-oh, no," Krista whispered, tears collecting in her eyes.

"J-jean?" Marco asked aloud, kneeling next to the corpse. With shaking hands, he turned the body over.

He was dead. Jean's eyes stared up at nothing, glassy and pale. His nose was tinged blue, and a look of betrayal seemed etched all over his face.

"No Titan could've done this," Hanji murmured, looking around. "Just…who would do such a thing? And…how could they've deprived the room of oxygen?"

"O-over here!" Krista suddenly called. "I think I've found something!"

Hanji gently pulled Marco from the body of his best friend. Though her eyes showed sympathy, she wasn't going to let this loss get in the way of this emergency.

Following Krista's pointed finger, the duo's eyes widened. Right where Jean's hand had been, a blade had been dropped on the floor. Next to it, a single word was scratched into the metal.

Armin.

* * *

 **Me: Oh the feelz!**

 **Gohan: Not really. *sighs* At least you aren't babbling constantly now.**

 **Me: Shut up. Anyways, I'm thinking of writing an AU of Attack on Space(Jean may or may not die) after we finish The Basement(read if you haven't!)**

 **Anyways, see ya peeps later! Bye!**

 **Gohan: R &R!**


End file.
